Originally published on metropolis.co.jp on April 2011

Blue Valentine: ©2010 HAMILTON FILM PRODUCTIONS, LLC. All Rights Reserved

If you’re as tired as I am with happily-ever-after rom-coms, this unflinching autopsy of a decaying marriage will seem like a breath of if not exactly fresh, then refreshingly real air. Director Derek Cianfrance’s debut film is not a whole lot of fun, but every frame feels genuine. Nothing unusual happens, and that’s what makes it so powerful. No one gets married expecting anything but eternal bliss (partly because of the movies?), yet half of all marriages end in divorce, and many of the rest are merely endured. This heartwarming, gut-wrenching film has to do with differing concepts of what a marriage is. To Dean (an excellent Ryan Gosling), a lovable slacker, it’s an end. He’s found his soul mate. To Cindy (an Oscar-nominated Michelle Williams) it’s a beginning. The film flits between two periods: their meeting and marriage; and six years later, when Cindy finally realizes her man-child will never become a man. The performances are emotionally raw, dialogue-driven, and honest, the kind that stay with you. This one deserves to be seen. P.S. Though not aimed specifically at Japanese girls obsessing about marriage as a be-all and end-all, this should be required viewing for them.